SAN DIEGO — A match-high 12 kills from Katie Lukes headlined a well-rounded 3-0 sweep for No. 4 San Diego volleyball (14-1, 5-0 WCC) on Thursday night, earning the Toreros their 11th straight win and third consecutive victory in straight sets as they downed San Francisco (7-9, 0-5 WCC) in the Jenny Craig Pavilion.

USD took the first set 25-12, hung tough for a 25-23 win in the second set, then erupted for a decisive 25-8 victory in the third.

San Diego out-hit the Dons .219 to -.071 and out-blocked the visitors 12 to six.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set - No. 4 San Diego, 25-12

• San Francisco struck first for an early 1-0 advantage but never led again in Thursday night's opening frame, allowing the Toreros to establish a four-point lead at 7-3 on a kill from graduate transfer outside hitter Breana Edwards (Indiana).
• The Dons got back within one at 9-8 on a USD attack error before junior middle blocker Leyla Blackwell (La Jolla High School) kept San Francisco at bay with a kill of her own.
• Blackwell's kill sparked a 9-0 run for San Diego, one that featured two kills from the San Diego, California native, one kill from Lukes (redshirt senior outside hitter), three combo blocks from Lukes and senior opposite/setter Grace Frohling, and a service ace from junior libero Madi Allen (Great Oak High School) to make it 18-8 in favor of the home team.
• USD's advantage stayed at at least 10 for the remainder of the set, eventually stretching to 12 on another kill from Edwards before Lukes sealed a 25-12 win with a kill of her own to push her team up 1-0 in the match.

First Set Notables:

• Edwards: Three kills (.600)
• Lukes: Three kills (.286) and three digs
• Frohling: Four block assists, a kill and a dig
• Blackwell: Three block assists
• Graduate setter Gabby Blossom: Eight assists and two digs

Second Set - No. 4 San Diego, 25-23

• USF again got on the board first in the second set to create a 4-2 lead, an advantage they'd expand to as many as six at 11-5 before USD began to rein the Dons in.
• The Toreros did so with an extended 11-5 run, erasing the six-point deficit with three kills from Lukes, two from Frohling, and one from Blackwell alongside service aces from Allen and redshirt senior libero Annie Benbow and a combo block from Frohling and sophomore middle blocker Haylee Stoner (Mission Hills High School).
• Benbow's service ace completed the comeback at 13-13, and after two more ties at 14 and 15, an emphatic kill from Lukes put San Diego up for good at 16-15.
• USD's lead swelled to three down the stretch at 23-20 on a kill from Frohling before San Diego fended off a late surge from the Dons, hanging on to win a hard-fought 25-23 decision in the second after a kill from Stoner sealed it to put the Toreros up 2-0 in the match.

Second Set Notables:

• Lukes: Five kills (.364), two service aces, and two digs
• Frohling: Three kills (.091), two block assists, and one dig
• Blossom: 11 assists, one kill and one dig
• Benbow: Five assists

Third Set: No. 4 San Diego, 25-8

• The Toreros scored first and never looked back in Thursday night's final frame, opening up the third on a 10-1 run that featured three kills from Lukes, two from Stoner, and one from Frohling to go with a combo block from Stoner and Frohling.
• A San Francisco timeout did little to slow San Diego's offensive barrage, as the Toreros kept right on rolling with another extended scoring run, this time pacing the visitors by a 10-3 margin on kills from junior outside hitter Kylie Pries and Blackwell, two combo blocks from Blackwell and Frohling, and a service ace from Blossom to stake themselves to a commanding 20-5 lead.
• San Diego's third-set dominance only grew more emphatic as Thursday's final frame unfolded, culminating in a striking 25-8 final to secure the sweep behind two kills from Frohling, one from Lukes, and combo blocks from Blackwell and Pries and Blackwell and Lukes.

Third Set Notables:

• Lukes: Four kills (.429), four digs, and a block assist
• Frohling: Three kills, three digs, and three block assists
• Blossom: Nine assists, one service ace, and three digs
• Benbow: Four digs and an assist

TORERO TIDBITS

• Lukes led the way for the Toreros with 12 kills, hitting .360 on the evening as she added a pair of service aces, nine digs, and a block assist.
• The San Clemente, California native has had the most kills in each of San Diego's last seven matches.
• Frohling was next with seven kills while hitting .190, five digs, and a match and season-high nine block assists, her most in a single contest since she had 12 against Pepperdine on November 13, 2021.
• Stoner (.273) and Edwards (.111) each added five kills, with Stoner also chipping in three block assists.
• Blackwell had four kills (.083), a dig, a solo block, and eight block assists.
• Blossom tallied a match-high 28 assists, one service ace, six digs, and a kill.
• Benbow added 11 digs, a service ace, and an assist.
• Allen finished with seven digs and two service aces.
• San Diego out-hit the Dons .219 to -.071, out-blocked the visitors 12 to six, and had six service aces to San Francisco's two.
• USD has now won 11 straight matches, a stretch that dates back to September 3rd's sweep of No. 8 Ohio State at the Cardinal Classic.
• Thursday night's win over San Francisco was San Diego's third straight sweep.
• The Toreros have now swept nine of their 15 matches so far in 2022.
• San Diego's 17-point, 25-8 win in Thursday night's third set was USD's largest margin of victory so far this season, besting September 17th's 13-point, 25-12 effort in the fourth and final set of the Toreros' 3-1 win against San Diego State.

UP NEXT
The Toreros remain at home this Saturday as they continue WCC play by hosting Santa Clara (6-11, 2-3 WCC). First serve at the Jenny Craig Pavilion is set for 12:00 p.m.